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This page provides an overview of the Victoria Soul Gospel Choir from a member’s perspective and is a good place to start if you’re a new member. Click on a topic below to go to that section.
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R.E.S.P.E.C.T.
Read about it.
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Rehearsals and Workshops up^
Our choir director, Checo, comes from Vancouver to Victoria every other Tuesday to lead our choir in a 2-hour rehearsal. Click to see our latest
rehearsal schedule.
On the Tuesdays when Checo's not here, we get together and work on our songs, focusing on getting our parts right. We call these practices "workshops". They're held at the same time and location as our bi-weekly rehearsals with Checo, but the cost is only $2 to cover the cost of the room.
If you have an interest in becoming a soloist with our Choir, the workshops provide an excellent opportunity to give it a try. Learn the lead to one of our songs, then send an email to Gord and he'll arrange a solo opportunity for you at the next workshop.
We have guidelines for Rehearsal and Performance Decorum that we expect all members to follow. Practicing at home is also expected.
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Performances up^
Performances are exciting events. We light a fuse of energy and joy; the audience picks it up and responds with an energy and joy of their own; we pick that up and give back more; and the thing just keeps building and building to the finale. We all leave the concert on a natural high.
But we need to be prepared to perform well, and we expect you to practice at home.
In addition, we offer the following suggestions:
- wear comfortable shoes – we’re standing for up to 2 hours straight – high heels are definitely not appropriate
- if you notice the person next to you is not moving, clapping, or snapping in unison with the rest of the choir, gently touch them as a reminder
- have fun and LOOK like you’re having fun – that’s how the energy flows
If you don’t have a Choir Performance Shirt, see the Shirt Committee section under Committees.
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Learning Aids up^
Our members’ area contains three pages that will help you learn, and practice, our songs. The
recordings page contains recordings of all our songs and parts. The
lyrics page contains the lyrics to all our songs. And the
past rehearsals page contains a history of the titles of all the songs we sang at each rehearsal.
CDs are also available at cost ($2) and they're much better quality than
those found on this site. Like the downloadable recordings found here, each song has one track with the parts (1st/2nd soprano, alto, tenor, baritone) and one track with the entire song. Send Gord a note
gord@VictoriaSoulGospel.ca to request one.
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Communication up^
Our members’ area also contains a newsletter page – it is a history of newsletters sent to members.
If you'd like to discuss anything with our Executive Committee (listed below), just send a note to exec@VictoriaSoulGospel.ca.
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Committees and Crews up^
We have the following committees and crews that make our choir run smoothly.
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- Executive Committee
The Executive Committee supports the work of the Choir by supervising its purpose and its direction. It establishes the Choir’s policies and procedures and sets goals and objectives. It also provides a voice for all Choir members, discussing and resolving issues using balanced and impartial perspectives to the best of its abilities.
Gord Warrenchuk – chairperson
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- Performance Committee
The Performance Committee coordinates our own concerts and also cooperates with organizations that hire the choir and produce their own concerts. For our own self-produced concerts, it books the hall, organizes promotion, creates posters and tickets, manages ticket sales, and depending on the venue, handles front-door ticket collection and security.
Gord Warrenchuk
Jack Petrie
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- Reception Crew
These folks collect your drop-in fees and record your attendance at rehearsals. It is important that you sign in with them at every rehearsal because your drop-in fee is needed to help cover the costs of making our Choir happen, and your eligibility to perform in concerts is based on your recorded attendance.
Aileen Alexander
Cher Sullivan
Jack Petrie
Karen Hoshal
Pat Lenaghan
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- Setup Crew
These folks help Checo set-up and take-down his equipment at every rehearsal and concert.
Linda Schaumleffel
Leny VanHouten
Miriam Nelson
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- Shirt Crew
The choir has official Choir Shirts in which we perform – Christmas-red golf-style T-shirts with our name embroidered on them.
Elsa Anderson
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- Social Events Crew
These folks plan social events for the Choir.
Carol Lamont
Cher Sullivan
Greg Rowden
Marnie Toh
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Dictionary up^
Here is a list of unique terms we use:
- munch card -- an alternative to paying for every rehearsal; you buy the card and it’s good for 5 rehearsals – we punch it each time it’s used
- newsletter -- members are regularly sent newsletters containing important information about choir activities
- Workshop -- a singing practice, held without our director Checo, at the same time and place as the regular rehearsals, but on the Tuesdays that Checo's not here; cost is the price of the room - about $2 per person
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History up^
Where would we be without roots? Here’s a brief history of our choir.
| Summer 2003 |
Me-Kon Hayes, president of the British Columbia Black History Awareness Society, invites Checo and the Vancouver VOC choir to their summer Afro-Carib Festival. She then invites him to start a Victoria choir. |
| Fall 2003 |
Checo holds the first session with 7 women in a small upstairs room rented by the BCBHAS. Me-Kon manages the small choir. |
| Spring 2004 |
Me-Kon places an ad in the Monday magazine and Brooke Maxwell and Gord Warrenchuk respond; they’re the first men to join the choir. Choir membership grows. |
| Fall 2004 |
Rehearsals move to a classroom in the Selkirk Montessori School and a small team briefly takes over management of the choir. Gord begins recording rehearsals and introduces the newsletter. He also starts a very basic choir website. Choir membership continues to grow. |
| Spring 2005 |
Choir gives its first performance Click to see our list of performances. Brooke and Gord share choir management
responsibilities. |
| Summer 2005 |
As membership continues to grow, more rehearsal space is required and the choir moves from the Selkirk Montessori classroom to the gym. |
| 2006 |
Gord takes on all choir management responsibilities. Helene Meurer develops a beautiful website for the choir. The choir gets its own performance shirts and produces its first concert. The Executive
Committee is formed. |
| 2007 |
The choir website and email address are moved to a choir domain. The self-produced Christmas Concert is the choir's first sell-out performance. |
| 2008 |
The choir reaches new performance levels with an 800-seat sell-out at the Alix Goolden Hall in April; a "full-house" at the Vancouver Island Blues Bash; and a 650-seat sell-out at their Christmas concert. Rehearsal attendance grows to an average of 71 singers. |
| 2009 |
Our sold-out Eldercare benefit concert at the Alix Goolden Hall in April has people of all ages singing and dancing in the aisles, and our outdoor performance at the Victoria International Jazzfest in June is also a sell-out hit.
After many years of continuous work, in July Checo goes home to Hawaii to take care of a number of outstanding issues - he's gone until the summer of 2010. During Checo's absence, we continue to sing - in workshops led by Gord Warrenchuk until the end of the year, then under the direction of Gordon Miller until Checo's return.
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| 2010 |
After a year-long sabbatical from the choir, Checo returns in June to prepare us for our first performance of the year at Blues Bash, where we "fill the house". Our Christmas Concert at the Alix Goolden Hall sells out quickly and people still wait at the door with hopes of cancellations - all are successful. Workshops become a regular bi-weekly occurrence that are both effective and fun. Our on-line subscriber list grows to 90. For the first time since the choir began, our rehearsal attendance numbers drop.
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